The movie starts
with a note that it might just be one of those feel-good films with no special
twist. But as it goes on, you realize that it is exactly that—yet what you
won’t expect is the tons of laughs and excitement it packs. All you have to do
is hang on until you get to the court scene. From there, right down to the last
scene where Kris Kringle appears, I couldn’t help but laugh all the way
through.
Miracle on 34th
Street is based on a screenplay by George Seaton, who also directed the
film. Surprisingly, it was released in May 1947 instead of during the Christmas
season, even though it’s a Christmas movie. The movie is well-acted, and the
screenplay isn’t bogus or too out of place. Unlike what I initially thought
from the title, there’s no single extraordinary miracle to convince everyone
that Kris is Santa. Instead, the movie takes a logical approach to prove his
claim, though the ending does leave you with a hint of something miraculous.
The story begins
at the Macy's Department Store Thanksgiving Day parade. The Santa meant to lead
the parade shows up drunk, so Doris Walker (Maureen O’Hara), the lady in
charge, decides to replace him with a kind, funny-looking old man named Kris
Kringle (Edmund Gwenn).
Kris does such a
great job that Doris hires him to be Macy’s Santa. While working there, Kris
starts something special: he helps parents find toys that Macy doesn’t even
sell, which brings the store into the limelight.
Kris also has a
personal mission: to make Doris and her daughter Susan (Natalie Wood) believe
that he really is Santa. Along the way, things take a turn, and Kris is
declared psychologically incompetent, nearly getting institutionalized.
Thankfully, Fred Gailey (John Payne), a friend who has his eye on Doris, steps
in to help him out.
20th Century
Fox’s decision to release the movie in May instead of December paid off at the
box office, as the film made about five times its production cost. It was also
well-received by critics and won Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Supporting
Role (Edmund Gwenn), Best Writing, Original Story (Valentine Davies), and Best
Writing, Screenplay.
The film was
revisited in 1994 by John Hughes. While the 1994 version (starring Richard
Attenborough, Mara Wilson, and Elizabeth Perkins) wasn’t as much of a critical
success as its predecessor, it’s just as popular as the 1947 original.
This is a great
movie to watch with the family on a cozy Christmas day—or any day, really.
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